


Switch

by Titanmaster_117



Category: RWBY
Genre: Anthology, Attempt at Humor, But not personalities, Cinder and Ruby swap roles, Cinder is still a bitch, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Good times, Hijinks & Shenanigans, One Shot Collection, Out of Order, Slushies, Summer Rose (RWBY) Lives, Summer Rose defects to Salem, crack treated like crack, one shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:14:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27544432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Titanmaster_117/pseuds/Titanmaster_117
Summary: 2 women, fated to battle for the fate of all of Remnant. One pure and compassionate, the other monstrous and vile.But what happens if their roles were switched, but their souls weren't? Cinder as the Huntress in training, Ruby as the servant of Salem...Well, one of them is going to get what they want, that's for sure(Anthology series of oneshots, not in chronological order).
Relationships: Jaune Arc & Ruby Rose, Neopolitan & Ruby Rose (RWBY), Ruby Rose & Salem (RWBY), Ruby Rose & Summer Rose
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	1. Prologue: A Beginning, Middle, and End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A decision is made, and it will change the course of history forever...

She walked through the Land of Darkness, her belly swollen, and her instincts flared and alert. The ground beneath her was a deep obsidian black, with purple crystals stabbing out of the ground like spears, all of it illuminated by a blood coloured sky, fiddled with dark clouds and a shattered white moon. The ground beneath her feet was jagged and torn apart, the rough rock interrupted by cracks, rivers of black water, and shallow streams that licked at her boots.

Around her, the Grimm eyed her with caution and promises of pain, should she deter from her path. A pack of Beowolves followed her with salivating teeth, hungry for a new kill. A Beserker cracked its neck, ready for a fight. A swarm of Sulfer Fish guarded a Lagartodile as they swam through the deep river of black water next to her. Above her, a murder of Nevermore flew overhead, their eyes always aimed down at her.

All of them ready to rip her apart limb from limb, and kill the unborn child in her womb, should she falter from her chosen path.

She did not.

She would not.

No Chill affected her mind. No Geist-like Grimm influenced her decisions and actions.

This was all her choosing.

All of it.

And she would not be swayed from it.

Up ahead, she could see the obsidian tower splitting the sky in half, and wished to speed ahead. However, for the Grimm around her, she kept her calm pace. She did not need her excitement to be the cause of her demise.

Into a wide clearing she went, and found herself surrounded by pools of Grimm water, from which the creatures of darkness themselves were birthed from. Beringels, Manticores, Lancers, Dromedons, Ravagers, Ziraphs, Long Tongues, Ursa, Sphinxes, Whisps, Creeps, Centinels, Goliaths, Jackalopes, Megoliaths, Griffons, Death Stalkers, King Taijitus, Teryx, Grendels, Blind Worms, Saybrs, Boarbatusks, and the Apathy all surrounded her, with even a Drake towered over her, like a colossal sentinel, threatening punishments of pain onto her, should she do any harm to their master.

And in the middle, was their master herself, looking over her with a smile.

She replied with a smile of her own.

And then dropped to her knees.

Salem approached her, stroked her cheek with her hand, and said those fateful 3 words.

"Welcome, Summer Rose."

The pregnant woman that was Summer Rose looked back up to her with a blissful smile.

"Hello there, Mistress."

* * *

_Years later..._

* * *

"You're being ridiculous."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you- Ruby, yes you are."

Ruby Rose, faithful servant to her master, Salem, stopped herself from slamming her hands against the table in front of her (Because that would both hurt and be rude), And went, "Salem, I swear, I can just-"

"Ruby."

"I can just walk into Beacon, and just take the powers! We don't need to go with Uncle Watt's ridiculous plan- Because honestly, that's, like, too much work, and so needless at the same time- We're trying to take the Relic of Choice and the Maiden, not bring down Beacon and Vale."

"Well", Salem began slowly, "Those are side benefits, of course."

"Right, but they're needless. We don't need the White Fang, or anyone else like that! I have my own connections! You know this! And people seem to like me, for some reason!"

"Not just 'Some reason', my dear little grandchild."

Ruby smiled at this, "Right, thanks Grandma, but- But still, my point still stands! Just give me a couple of months, and I'll be back with both the maiden powers, and the Relic of Choice, and no one will be none the wiser!"

"What if Ozpin tries to arrest you?"

"He won't be able to imprison me, because, y'know, I won't be doing anything illegal! At least, nothing that won't make him sound like a senile old lunatic that's off his meds, of course."

"Ruby..."

She got up from her seat, "I'll do it."

"Ruby."

She moved to the door, "I'll do it right now, in fact!"

"Where are you going?"

"To get the Relic and the Maiden!"

"You are going to die, Ruby! You are going to die and your mother and I will be extremely cross with you for doing so!"

"Tell my story!"

"It won't be very interesting-"

Ruby swung the door open, and then closed it dramatically behind her.

"-Aaaand she's gone."

Salem sighed into her hands.

"...Now what am I going to tell Summer?"

The door burst open suddenly, and a very pleased Summer Rose, with a chirpy smile and a plate of hot cookies in her hands, skipped inside and went, "Ruby, I've got another... Where did she go?"

Salem rubbed her forehead.

Maybe it was time that she started looking into those yoga classes that she had heard about...

* * *

_A couple of months later..._

* * *

_"And stretch-"_

And she stretched.

_"-And downward dog."_

And then she- Salem, the queen of the Grimm, now dressed in a yoga shirt and trousers, with a sweatband over her head and her hair tied into a ponytail- Performed a downward dog position over the blue fitness mat below her, scroll before her with a yoga video playing over it.

Gods, she was eternally thankful that Summer had given her this fitness program to use as a stress reliever. She could already feel the Tyrian-induced wrinkles begin to fade away-

[KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK}

-And then immediately return with a growl as someone suddenly and fiercely pounded their fists against the door to her room, surprising Salem so much that she immediately dropped from her position and smacked her head against the hard floor with a-

{THUD}

Yeah, that.

{KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK}

With a twitching eyebrow, she snagged the yoga band off of her head, and marched to the door, swinging it open violently as she then yelled out, "I swear, Tyrian, if you ask me why Grimm don't have reproductive genitalia one more time, I will evicerate you... Where... You... What."

There was Ruby-

"What."

-With a silver flicker of the Maiden powers in her eyes-

"What?"

-And a golden crown in her hands.

"What?!"

She presented the crown to her, "Hi."

"WHAT?!"

"I just took it."

"I-I don't- Excuse me!?"

"I just walked in and took it!"

"You walked into Beacon... And you..."

"And I took it."

Salem looked at her with disbelieving eyes, and then took the crown into her hands...

And then she began to laugh. Hysterically laugh. She laughed so hard that she started rolling along the floor in a fit of giggles.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! What did you- How?!"

"I know! I'm still amazed by it, and- And you know what?"

"What?"

"You know what?"

"What?!"

"Ozpin couldn't do a thing about it!"

"He couldn't!?"

"No! Nothing! And I was just like 'What you gonna do? What you gonna do? You can't do diddly squat, sucka, that's what'!"

Salem started to clutch her stomach as she rolled along the floor, laughing madly as she then called out through the door, "SUMMER! SUMMER, PUT THE LAMB SHANK ON! WE'RE HAVING A CELEBRATORY ROAST!" before jumping up onto her feet (Gracefully like a queen, of course, and not excitedly like a hyperactive schoolgirl), and almost yelled to Ruby, "Details! I need details! Now!"

"Oh, you are going to love this story..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And away we go!
> 
> Welcome to Switch, a fanfic idea that I put into my Idea Pool, but no one ever sent me a message confirming that they would do it.
> 
> Actually, no one has sent me a message saying that they're going to do any of my ideas.
> 
> Sad times...
> 
> Anyways, this fic is going to have a basic premise: Ruby and Cinder's roles have been swapped around, but their personalities haven't!
> 
> See where we're going with this?
> 
> However, this fic is going to be a lot more experimental than your usual fanfic.
> 
> Firstly, this is going to be an anthology collection, meaning that its just going to be a lot of interconnected oneshots rather than a whole story.
> 
> And secondly, this is going to be a fic that is told out of order.
> 
> Update schedule? Absolutely not! I'll update this fic whenever I feel like it.
> 
> Anyways, with all of that said and done, leave a review, favourite, and I shall be seeing you all next time!
> 
> Titanmaster117 out!


	2. The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place around the time of Jaunedice.

Jaune was lost on what to do.

He strolled through Vale alone, sulking in the loneliness of his own design, crafted by his own stupid mistakes. The morning sun glistened in the sky, and the people around him remained oblivious to his own internal struggles and despair.

Good.

It would spare them from seeing how pathetic he was.

Dammit...

What was he supposed to do?

Last night, on a lonely rooftop at Beacon, he confessed to Pyrrha his ugly truth:

He had faked his way into Beacon.

And now, because of his own stupid mistakes and fears, he pushed his partner away when it was clear that she only wanted to help him with his own problems, and he hadn't wanted her to do that because if he couldn't figure out his own crap then how the hell was he supposed to help others with theirs, and now Cardin had him by the balls because of his own stupid decisions and-

_Dammit, stop it. stop ranting. Ranting about it won't do any good._

…

This would be better if there was someone he knew that he could talk to about this crap.

But there wasn't any. He couldn't burden his team with his own problems anymore than they already had, he didn't have any friends outside of his own team, he couldn't try to talk Cardin down from this because it was obvious that he'd only use that as incentive to press on with whatever plans he had, he couldn't turn to any other teams (Especially not Team FSBY, gods know what those guys and their creepy leader would do), he couldn't call his family because that would be admitting defeat and tantamount to giving up on his dreams, he definitely couldn't talk to the teachers about this, he just...

He had no one to talk to about this.

And now, here he was in Vale, wandering around aimlessly without a single goal in his mind, trying to think of something- Anything!- To try and get out of this damned mess.

…

Maybe he really should just pack up and head back home. It was what a failure like him deserved.

He winced at himself, and rounded a corner, still trying to come up with something and-

{CRASH}

"Ow!"

-Accidently ran into someone.

This was his life...

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" Jaune went as he quickly bounced up and waved his hands frantically before, "I mean- I know that I should've been looking ahead of myself, but I wasn't, and- Oh, crap!" he held out a hand to the person he had knocked over, and went, "Here. Let me help you up."

"Thanks", a cute feminine voice answered back, and Jaune felt them take his hand as he pulled them up, revealing the person he had knocked over to be a girl that looked to be about 1 or 2 years younger than him, but definitely shorter than him by a head and shoulder, at least, with glistening silver eyes, messy black hair that faded into a red gradient at the tips, and was dressed in red jumper with a fur hoodie, a grey shirt, blue jeans, and had a necklace with a ruby red rose emblem in it, "I'm sorry too, I should've been paying attention myself."

"No no, it's my fault, I mean-"

"Hey, I wasn't saying that it wasn't your fault, I'm just saying that it was my fault as well."

"...Oh."

"Yep."

The mysterious girl looked Jaune up and down with a raised eyebrow, before looking to the side, where a café just opened up, and then looked to Jaune with a smirk and said, "You want to know how you can pay me back for it?"

"Huh?"

"You want to know how you can pay me back for it?" she repeated after dusting herself off.

"Er… Sure?"

She pointed a thumb to the café, and went, "Café. Slushies. You pay."

"...Seriously?"

"Yes, because you seem like the chivalrous type, and I'm going to exploit that in order to get free stuff."

"...Fine."

"Yay, slushies!" the girl went as she grabbed Jaune's arm, and began to pull him along, before pausing, and then looking at him and saying, "I'm Ruby, by the way."

Jaune blinked, and then sighed and smiled, "I'm Jaune. Jaune Arc."

* * *

"..."

"...What?"

"Just strawberry?"

Ruby pouted from her seat at the table as she took a long, exaggerated sip from her purely red slushy- Not even from the straw, just... Just downing it- And then threw it back onto the table, burped, and then said, "Just strawberry. No other flavours. Other flavours are for the weak."

"..."

"Ow, ow, brain freeze!" Ruby went as she clutched her head in pain, "Brain freeze! It's the worst kind of freeze!"

"Yep, I know", Jaune couldn't help but chuckle as he also took a long sip from his multicoloured and multiflavoured slushy- Through his straw, of course, because he wasn't that mad- And then went, "It hits you like a freight train, it does."

Ruby glared cutely at him, "Oh, you think this is funny?"

"A little bit, sorry."

"Yeah, well 'Sorry' isn't going to cut it, mister!" she pouted, before pointing at him in an exaggerated manner and going, "For I now sentence you to Super Brain Freeze Hell!"

"'Super brain freeze' what- Ow, ow ow ow!" Jaune went, for it was now his time to clutch his head in pain as he went, "Augh, brain freeze! Is that your semblance? Being able to give brain freezes to people?"

"Hah, I wish. If I had that power, I would just be doing it to everyone that I didn't like."

"Well, I hope that I'm not on that list."

"Don't worry, you bought me slushies. That automatically gets you onto my favourite people list."

"Huh, is there anyone that you don't like?"

Ruby paused, tapped her chin in deep thought, and then shrugged, "I'll let you know when I think of someone."

Jaune did properly laugh this time, and then followed it up with, "You remind me of Nora."

"Who?"

"Oh, one of my teammates, back at Beacon. She always seems so pent-up with energy. And really sociable on top of that."

Ruby rolled her eyes and giggled as well, "You'll have to thank my mum and family for that last one. I don't know what kind of person I'd be if I didn't have them."

Jaune smiled, "Your mum sounds like one hell of a lady."

"She is. She really is", Ruby's face then turned inquisitive as she then went, "Is that what's eating at you?"

"Huh?"

"Something's up with you, I can tell. It's written all over your face", she took another long sip from her slushy, tutted her lips, and then went, "Wanna talk about it?"

…

Jaune wasn't too sure.

On the one hand, he had wanted someone to talk to about his problems badly.

On the other hand, he had only just met Ruby, and really didn't want to make her uncomfortable offloading all of his own crap onto her. Especially when she had deigned it fine to spend time with him without much in return.

Jaune chewed the insides of his cheek, and then went, "I don't know. I don't want to bore you with my-"

"Ah, come on, Jaune, don't be like that. I'm already here, and I'm already listening, aren't I? Besides, the idea that you don't trust me with your problems", she pouted, "I'm hurt. Honestly."

Jaune took pause, relented, and then sighed, leaning back on his chair as he looked up at the sky, and went, "I just... I screwed up, okay? I messed up. I did some things I shouldn't have, I said some things I shouldn't have as well, and now my partner probably hates me, and my bully has me in a vice, and... And I messed up, and I don't know what to do, and I'm starting to wonder why I'm still at Beacon, and... And maybe it would be better if I just packed up my things and left."

He let out a breath that he didn't know he had.

"I'm a failure..."

He didn't notice Ruby leaving her seat until her face suddenly enveloped his vision, and a finger pointedly pressed against his nose as she then went, "Nope!"

"...What?"

"I said nope!" she went as she booped him on the nose again, "You're in Beacon now, right? That means that you're on a team! So if you're on a team, then you're not allowed to be a failure!"

"But... What if I'm a failure at being a teammate?" team leader, technically.

"Nope!"

"I'm starting to realise that you're not the best person to talk to about this kind of stuff."

"Nope!" she leaned back away from him, letting him have his own space once more, and then, "Okay, look, Jaune, maybe you were a failure when you were a kid-"

Jaune sank into his chair and groaned.

"-And you might've even been a failure the first day you arrived at Beacon-"

He groaned louder.

"But, you can't be one now. You know why?"

"Uhhh, because...?"

"Because it's not just about you anymore. You've got a team now, Jaune. You're intrinsically part of one. And if you fail, then you'll just be bringing them down with you", she leaned herself against the table, and smiled, "You have to put our teammates first, and yourself second. Your team deserves a great teammate, Jaune.

She leaned in close to him, and pressed her finger against his chest.

"And I think that can be you."

There was a long pause between them, before Ruby stepped back and pulled out her scroll.

"Want to exchange numbers."

…

Jaune smiled.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

* * *

"And that is why my uncle believes the world to be banana shaped."

Jaune couldn't help but laugh at Ruby's mad story, before he eventually recovered himself, and went, "Gods, your uncle sounds like a bit of a nutter."

Ruby good-naturedly laughed as well, and fondly went, "Yeah, there's a reason that he always looses family trivia night. And not just because he's always trying to cheat by moogling it on his phone", she then dramatically whispered to him, "Let me tell you this, he is a right sore loser."

"Huh, sounds like one of my sisters. They can be real asses when it- Oof!" Jaune went as someone shouldered him and quickly walked off in the opposite direction. He looked back for a second, and then continued off, "When it comes to loosing, yeah", he looked at Ruby, "But I have my ways of surviving it. What about you? How'd you deal with your folks?"

"Oh, I picked up a few tricks-"

She then held up- Is that his wallet?

"-Like how to stop pickpockets from stealing my money", she pushed it back into Jaune's hands with a smile, "Let me tell you, my friend Emerald: She's addicted to online shopping, and my cards always happen to be the closest source of cash around."

Jaune blinked once, twice, thrice, and then looked back to the identified pickpocket from before, who was patting himself down and trying to find the wallet that he had just stolen, before looking to both Jaune and Ruby and growling.

Ruby just stuck her tongue out in response, and the robber quickly realised the position that he was in, and hurryingly began to stomp away in a sulk.

Jaune couldn't help but laugh at the sight, "Wow, t-thanks… You really are awesome, Ruby."

"Yes, please, compliment me more. It fuels my barely restrained ego."

Jaune was about to take her up on that, but then remembered something important. Ah crap, he had lessons, today!

He looked at his scroll- Still with the number that he had just added in- And realised the time, "Ah, crap- Shoot, shit, I got lessons, Ruby! Right now!"

"Wha- You do? Right now?"

"Right now!"

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Ruby exclaimed as she waved her hands, "Run run run, dude! Before you're any later than you already are!"

And Jaune did just that, as he began to run down the street, towards the Bullheads on the- On the other side of town... Great.

However, quickly, he stopped in place, looked back towards Ruby, and said, "Hey Ruby?"

"Yeah?" she called back.

"...Thanks. What you said... It means a lot."

"Heh, don't mention it", she waved it off, "Happy to help", she then waved her scroll at him, "Call me later?"

"Yeah", his reply was instantaneous, "Speak to you later."

And with that, he was off, thankful that he had met Ruby, and even more so that he now had a solution to his problems.

He was being an idiot, of course, for thinking about himself so much, and not about the others. Right now, he had to be the best team leader for them, and that meant, firstly, cutting off Cardin.

But how to do that?

First, he had to get back to Beacon and weather the inevitable detention that Miss Goodwitch would undoubtedly give him.

Afterwards, maybe he would try and talk to Pyrrha. Try and iron out the cracks, and...

And maybe fix what was broken.

Maybe...

Well, it wouldn't hurt to try.

* * *

Ruby eyed Jaune running down the streets before her, and smiled.

It was nice to make a friend.

Someone tapped her shoulder, and she looked to the side, to see a pair of emerald green eyes staring back at her, attached to a girl that was somehow shorter than her, dressed in a black gothic skirt and dress, and with black hair tied into twin ponytails.

It was all so obviously fake.

"Hey there, Neo. When did you get here?"

"..."

"Seriously? Don't you have anything better to do?"

"..."

"Oh, so you're jealous?"

"..."

"Aw, don't be like that. Look, how about I get you some ice cream later, okay?"

"..."

"Want me to get Neapolitan again?"

"..."

"Mint chocolate chip? Really?"

"..."

"Well, alright then. If that's what you want?"

"..."

"Jaune? What about him?"

"..."

"Oh shut up, I only just met him. I wouldn't set up that kind of relationship immediately with him."

"..."

"Yeah, well, I know that you like to live that way, but you know I'm saving myself."

"..."

"I'm not saying it's wrong to like casual sex with different partners. It's your body, your choice. I'm just saying that I don't personally live like that,"

"..."

"Well, maybe... Maybe..."

"..."

"What about what I said to him?"

"..."

"'You're not allowed to'... Well of course I said something like that. Why wouldn't I?"

"..."

"Wait, did I- Did I actually make it sound like he was the problem?"

"..."

"Ah, dammit! Ah, I screwed that up, big time! Augh, I suck at this..."

"..."

"...Well now I'm depressed."

"..."

"Hey, what'd you say we go knock over some White Fang mooks?"

"..."

"Well, it'd make me feel a lot better."

"..."

"Ah, I knew you'd like it!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Plot twist: Evil!Ruby is a much better boss than Cinder!
> 
> To the surprise of no one...
> 
> And what's this? Do I hear a Monty Python reference?
> 
> Yes. Yes you do.
> 
> Anyways, I told you I'd update this whenever I want to, and today, I just so happened to feel like it, so I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> And as always, leave a review, follow and favourite, and I shall see you all next time!
> 
> Titanmaster117 out!


End file.
